Fabio Wardley will make the first defence of his WBO heavyweight title against Daniel Dubois on Saturday at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, with a long-running contrast between the two British heavyweights now reaching the biggest stage.
Wardley has openly admitted that Dubois “punched him up” when they sparred seven or eight years ago, at a time when Wardley was only beginning his boxing journey. Rather than hiding from those sessions, Wardley says they helped him improve, while warning Dubois not to take too much confidence from work done against a far greener version of him.
Their paths have been very different. Dubois was long viewed as a heavily backed young heavyweight with major potential, while Wardley came from white-collar boxing and was expected to progress more slowly. Yet Wardley has since exceeded expectations, producing comeback stoppage wins over Justis Huni and Joseph Parker to rise to world-title status.
Wardley believes mentality could be the key difference. He pointed to Dubois’ defeats to Joe Joyce and Oleksandr Usyk as examples of a fighter who can unravel when things go wrong, while he sees his own ability to stay calm under pressure as one of his biggest strengths.
He also questioned Dubois’ frequent trainer changes, suggesting they reflect a lack of accountability. Wardley has remained loyal to Robert Hodgins, later adding Ben Davison to his team, while Dubois has moved between several trainers during his career.
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